


The Reckless and Belligerent

by petrichor_reminiscence



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Dream SMP Medieval AU, Dream Smp, F/M, mcyt - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 09:54:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29276541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/petrichor_reminiscence/pseuds/petrichor_reminiscence
Summary: Y/n L/n is a stubborn and strong girl, growing up with aspirations of joining the Royal Guard and protecting the citizens of the Kingdom of SMP. Her mother disappeared when she was a mere infant, and after the passing of her father, she is raised by Philza alongside his sons - training and growing particularly close with with Technoblade. Eventually, the time comes when the boys must depart, but Techno and Y/n promise to reunite. After a few years, some reuniting and catching up, Y/n attends the Guard tryouts with a reluctant pink-haired anarchist by her side. Is it everything she had hoped? Will she find out more about her past and who her mother was? And what about the threat to not only her hometown of L'manburg, but the entire Kingdom of SMP?
Relationships: Technoblade/Reader
Comments: 17
Kudos: 74





	1. Cake and Memories

The familiar scent of freshly-baked bread and pastries flooded your senses as you entered the bakery. It brought a soft smile to your face, and you let the comforting scent and warmth overtake you for a moment. You had always loved coming here, ever since you were a little girl; the family of bakers that have run this shop always made the best treats. They were certainly the best baked goods in town — you would say the best baked goods in the entire Kingdom of SMP, but you had never actually gotten the chance to travel outside of L’manburg.

“Y/n, good to see you!” a familiar happy voice exclaimed. Your eyes scanned the bakery until they landed upon a certain fox hybrid who was currently wiping down one of the tables. You smiled widely as you watched his orange furry tail wag happily and his fox-like ears at the top of his head perk up.

“Good to see you too, Fundy,” you replied, “how’s the bakery been since I’ve last stopped by?”

“Same old boring business, as usual,” Fundy answered, slumping over the table he was cleaning. “Same old boring cleaning, too. But hey, work is work, and _someone’s_ gotta do it.” You chuckled. 

“At least you’re making a living,” you said, and Fundy nodded, getting back to work. You turned your attention to the counter and the display case beside it, approaching said display case with hunger in your eyes. Although you frequented this bakery, it had been at least a few weeks or so since you’ve bought any desserts or pastries; you mainly came here for the bread and the rolls to have with your dinner since you couldn’t bake any yourself. 

You looked over the pies and the cakes, mouth watering at the sight. After looking over various selections, you hear the creak of a door. You look up to see a woman coming out of the kitchen with a tray full of muffins, freshly-baked and steaming. Once you had made eye contact with her, you smiled and gave her a little wave. “Hello, Niki,” you said sweetly. She smiled widely in return, and rushed to set the tray of muffins down on the counter beside her. 

“Oh, hello Y/n!” she replied happily, taking off her mitts and placing them upon the counter besides the muffins. “Great to see you again! Are you here for some more rolls? We have some wonderful buttery ones that Fundy helped me bake a few hours ago, they’re still quite fresh!” You smiled at her thoughtfulness, but shook your head. 

“Not looking for rolls today, I’m afraid,” you said, “I’m actually here in search of some dessert; Tubbo’s been going on about his cravings this week, and it’s my turn to cook tonight, so I’m buying the kid something to satisfy his sweet tooth.”

“Aw, that’s awfully sweet of you, Y/n!” Niki cooed. “Besides, I’m sure you’re definitely not complaining, right?” she added with a wink. You chuckled, and nodded. 

“Right you are, Niki, I’m _certainly_ not complaining.”

“So, are you in the market for anything in particular?” Niki asked, walking around the counter to stand beside you in front of the display case. You simply shrugged your shoulders. 

“Not particularly, no; I was planning on asking if you had any suggestions,” you answered, looking over at the beautiful baker beside you. She hummed in thought, placing a finger on her chin as she leaned down to get a closer look at the displayed sweets. After a moment of scanning the desserts, her eyes widened and she smiled. 

“Oh, cake’s always a good choice!” she said to no one in particular, quickly making her way back behind the counter and opening the display case to reach inside. She grabbed a simple but beautiful cake with white frosting and strawberries on the top, and placed it on the counter in front of you. “It was baked this morning!”

“ _I_ baked it this morning!” Fundy called from the new table he was currently wiping down. Niki chuckled at his interjection. 

“Yes, _Fundy_ baked it this morning,” she added, and you smiled. 

“It looks delicious,” you said, mouth practically watering as you eyed the fresh strawberries and soft white frosting. You looked up at Niki. “How much?” Niki hummed in thought, crossing her arms. She looked at the cake, then you, then the cake, then you, then back to the cake. You were curious as to what was taking her so long to think about. Did she forget the pricing or something? If she needed you could just tell her what it said on the card in the display case, the card that sat in front of it when the cake was still in there. You opened your mouth to say something, but didn’t get the chance. 

“It’s on the house!” Niki said sweetly, clapping her hands together with a wide smile. Your eyes widened. 

“A-Are you sure about this?” you asked skeptically. “This cake looks _far_ too good to be free of any charge!” Niki simply rolled her eyes, and grabbed a box from beneath the counter. 

“Oh nonsense! You’re one of my most valuable customers, so-”

“So therefore I should be _paying_ for this! If I’m a valuable customer and I don’t pay for this then it’s bad for your business, Niki!” Niki rolled her eyes yet again, this time with a small laugh. 

“Oh please Y/n, you and I both know you’ll be back in here within the next few days, buying something else,” she said, “what harm would a single cake do when it comes to our business from you?” As she spoke, she placed the cake carefully into the box and closed it, wrapping a length of twine around it and tying a little bow at the top. She pushed the box closer to you. “Please, just take it!”

“Niki, I-“

“Y/n I swear to all things holy I will take you and bury you in the graveyard behind Church Prime, just take the damn cake!” Fundy exclaimed, interrupting you. Before getting a chance to respond to his statement, you felt the impact of a damp rag hitting the back of your head; the wet slap of it hitting the floor echoed throughout the empty bakery, along with Niki’s gasp. Fundy’s eyes widened as he realized he might’ve just fucked up, big time. He had hit _you, Y/n L/n_ , in the back of the head with a rag.

He hit _you_ , the girl training every day to join the Royal Guard; the girl who could probably take on a member of said guard at any time; and the girl who had grown up training with the well-known ‘Blood God’ Technoblade himself. Fundy feared for his life for a brief moment, before your expression twisted up into a smile and you began to laugh. 

“Okay, okay Fundy, I’ll take the damn cake,” you replied between laughs, reaching for the cake box on the counter. Niki smiled.

“Glad you finally came around and let us do you the favour,” she said sweetly. You smiled in return.

“If I had known that throwing that ‘ol rag at you would make you come to your senses, I would’ve thrown it sooner!” Fundy joked with a chuckle, and you rolled your eyes, grabbing the box and turning to face the mischievous fox-like man. 

“Careful, Fundy, I’m sure you’re well aware of what I’m capable of,” you jokingly threatened, causing him to stiften and swallow harshly. You laughed again, amused at how tense you could make him with just a simple statement; it wasn’t even much of a threat, and he was practically shaking with his tail between his legs! 

“C’mon Fundy, lighten up a little, she was only joking!” Niki said with a giggle, walking around the counter and picking up the rag off the floor. Fundy waved dismissively.

“Psh, I-I knew that,” he replied, crossing his arms and puffing up his chest in fake confidence. You and Niki laughed together, and you placed a hand upon the fox hybrid’s shoulder.

“Hey, no worries Fundy, you know I would never hurt you,” you said, “right?”

“Well I mean sometimes I’m a _little_ unsure-”

“ _Fundy_.”

“Okay, okay!” Fundy said laughing, and he smiled at you. “You would never hurt me, I know that.” You smiled in return, patting his shoulder briefly before retracting your hand.

“Good, good, get that through your fox-brain, okay?” you said, poking his forehead. The two of you shared a laugh for a moment before you began to make your way to the door.

“Be sure to come back soon, Y/n!” Niki called to you from behind the counter, waving goodbye. You smiled and nodded, giving a small wave with your free hand as you looked over your shoulder.

“Of course,” you said, “I always do!” And with that, you went through the door and exited the quaint little bakery, stepping out onto the streets of L’manburg. 

Oh, L’manburg; your town that you had grown to fall in love with. It wasn’t too large and overflowing with a large population, but it wasn’t some small farm town that consisted of only farmers and cattle. It was the town closest to the castle, where the King of the Kingdom of SMP lived. The castle was atop a large hill just outside of the town’s borders; about a ten minute walk up the path and you were right at the gates. 

L’manburg was also the hot-spot for adventurers and soldiers. With all the places to get food and ale, and all the shops with potions and gear, it wasn’t too surprising that your town was popular. There was also a large portal to the Nether at the town’s center, patrolled by guards but travelers were able to pass through with certain permits and exceptions. 

Ah, the Nether. You hated thinking about that place. It was where your father used to take trips with his adventurer buddies, trips to gather herbs for his potions. It was the place that had claimed his life. 

Your thoughts turned to his potions in particular as you walked along the cobblestone road, passing a certain building along the way. You stopped in front of it, looking up at the old run-down shop. It was abandoned years ago; you couldn’t remember exactly how long ago, but you knew because it was your family’s. Your father’s shop, to be specific. 

You read the words on the sign hanging above the door that was barely hanging on to its hinges: ‘Porter’s Potions’. The words stung a little; it still hurt to see your father’s name, even though it had been so many years since he had left this mortal plane.

Still though, you didn’t like to think about it. The wound was still a bit too open for your liking.

You shook yourself out of your reminiscence, and continued your way down the street; not without one last glance over your shoulder at the old potions shop, though. But you didn’t have the time to sit there and think about the past, you had a meal to prepare! And you wanted to actually get it done before Tubbo came home this time. 

You chuckled to yourself, shaking your head as you thought about the younger boy. Knowing him — if he wasn’t helping Niki and Fundy at the bakery — he was off in a field somewhere, chasing bees again.

You smiled to yourself with a sigh, continuing your way home. You wondered just how many stings you would have to soothe _this_ time around. 

(Word Count: 1.95k)


	2. Missing Them Like Hell

You made your way home, cake box in your hands and your head in the clouds. The road home was a road you had walked many times before, so you never really focused too much while you walked. You were glad that you had any directions you might need committed to muscle memory; that gave you a lot more time to just enjoy the scenery that you passed. L’manburg was such a beautiful place, truly. Travelers and adventurers have spread rumors that it’s the most beautiful town in the entire kingdom. But, alas, you’ve never left it’s relatively small borders, so you couldn’t be too sure. 

Although, you were inclined to believe these rumors; your father had always told you the same thing.

You stopped in your tracks, eyes catching on a large patch of cornflowers. The blue petals waved in the light breeze, and you smiled; cornflowers had always been your favourite. The dye that could be made from its blue pigment was absolutely wonderful. It was Wilbur’s favourite flower -- god you had certainly missed him -- and you vaguely remembered your father mentioning something about how it was your mother’s favourite flower as well. 

Ah, your mother. You missed her too, even though she died before you could even remember. You would give just about anything just to remember her, to just see her face and remember what she looked like. 

You sighed, shaking yourself out of your thoughts and tearing your eyes away from the cornflowers. There was dinner to be made! And you wanted to get home before Tubbo did so you could have a chance to hide the sweet surprise you had just bought. Well, the sweet surprise you were _given_. You would certainly have to repay Niki and Fundy later; it was a kind gesture, but you would just feel terrible if you didn’t reciprocate in any way.

But that was a matter you could think on later; you had other tasks at hand. 

\--

As your house came into view, you smiled. The walk wasn’t _that_ long, sure, but it was still long enough for you to be thankful once you saw your home. You quite liked your little cottage and where it resided; not too far from the town but far enough that you were away from all the social buzz. It was surrounded by flowers and beautiful plants, and it sat atop a nice hill and at the bottom of this hill was a large open field. 

In this field was where you practiced and honed your combat abilities. There were targets set up for archery practice, wooden dummies with scratches and chunks taken out of them strewn about in the grass, and your wooden practice weapons were scattered about randomly. You kept your actual armor and weapons secure in your house, so not all of your equipment was out in the field, but the majority of your training items were out there in the grass. 

As your eyes scanned over the equipment and training items, your thoughts went back to a simpler time. A time when all you had were a couple of small wooden swords -- toys for children, really -- and only your sparring partner. You frowned sadly upon the mere thought of him, a small pain shooting through your chest. _Your sparring partner_. It hurt to think about the fact that he was gone; god how you missed him. Although all the boys you had grown up with were off somewhere just like he was, you missed _him_ the most.

Your gaze fell upon a certain old wooden sword with various chips along its incredibly dull edge and a crack running through the handle; _His_ sword. 

~~~

_“C’mon Y/n, you don’t wanna go another round~?” the pink-haired boy teased, tossing your wooden sword down beside you as you lay in the grass on your back. You struggled to regain your breath; he had knocked the wind out of you when he disarmed you and pushed you down._

_“Fuck… off… asshole...” you managed to wheeze out through your gasps for air, causing the boy who stood in front of you to laugh._

_“Nah,” he replied, “I’d much rather stay here and tease you.” He crouched down beside you as you managed to push yourself up onto your elbows. You looked at him with a deadly look, glaring into his red eyes. He merely smirked in return, and offered his hand for you to take. “Aaaaand I’d much rather sparr with you all day, so I think I’m fine where I’m at.” His teasing smirk quickly morphed into a goofy grin, and you couldn’t help but grin back at him._

_“Fine, fine,” you said, still slightly out of breath as you took his hand. He quickly hoisted you to your feet with little to no effort; the boy was incredibly strong, after all._

_“Good,” he replied, “I still gotta kick your ass a few more times before I’m properly satisfied.” He shot you another grin -- a grin that you certainly reciprocated, blushing a little. It was hard not to smile whenever he did. Heavens, how you loved his smile; his sharp tusk-like fangs that grew from the bottom row of his teeth added this little bit of character that you absolutely adored._

_To be fair, what about him DIDN’T you adore?_

_“Hey now, don’t be getting cocky,” you told him with a chuckle, grabbing your wooden sword and settling into a decent starting position. “Just you wait, pig-boy, one of these days I’m gonna put you in the dirt before you can even say-”_

_“BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GODDDDD!”_

_“WAIT NO-!”_

_And just like that, he threw his sword to the ground, charging at you and tackling you full-force. You shrieked as the two of you went barreling towards the grass, and let out an ‘oof!’ as you collided with the ground. The boy on top of you cackled and laughed, wheezing a little as he did, and you shoved him away. He continued to laugh, now laying in the grass next to you, and you couldn’t help but laugh a little yourself; it WAS decently funny, after all._

_“You’re such a little-!”_

_“Oh c’mon~” he cooed before you could finish your insult, sitting up beside you and reaching over to poke your cheek. “You know you love me.” Your face burned with an embarrassed hue of red, and you quickly sat up and crossed your arms._

_“You are SUCH an ass,” you replied, facing away from him. He only laughed more at that statement, falling back into the grass as he wheezed. You rolled your eyes, looking over at the boy besides you with a smile. He looked up at you as he stopped laughing, tucking his arms behind his head into a relaxing position, and smiled in return._

_“I may be an ass, that’s for sure, but you’re the one who chooses to put up with me,” he stated simply. You rolled your eyes yet again, flicking his shoulder as he chuckled._

_“Oh, shut up!” you exclaimed with a chuckle of your own, not wanting to admit the fact that he was right. He was such a little bastard, kicking your ass nearly every day and teasing you until you thought you would die. You put up with it, though; you always did._

_“Y’know you can deny it all you want, but that stupid smile on your face says otherwise~” he teased, lifting an arm from behind his head to poke your cheek. You blushed for what felt like the millionth time that day, and slapped his hand away. He laughed yet again. “Oh, c’mon, you know I’m just giving you shit. You and I both know that we’ll always put up with each other. That’s why we’re best friends.” You smiled at his words with a small sigh; although the word ‘friend’ stung just a little, that was okay; because at least you had him with you._

_“Right you are, Technoblade. Right you are.”_

~~~

You struggled to pull your gaze away from that old practice blade, but once you had finally managed to do so you continued up the path to your little house. Although it was always nice to stop and reminisce on the good times, you had a meal to prepare and a cake to hide before Tubbo got home. 

And you _really_ needed the time to hide the cake well; that boy has a nose for sweets, and you wanted the cake to be a surprise. 

After a moment more of walking, you had reached your doorstep. While carefully balancing the cake in one hand, you opened your dark oak door with the other and entered your home. The first thing that you noticed was the cold; it always seemed to linger in the empty rooms and in the silence of your lonely house. At least you had Tubbo now, to make things less lonely; and the cold in the sitting room could always be solved with a nice fire in the fireplace. 

You passed through said sitting room, past the dining area, and went into the kitchen. After setting the cake on the counter, you opened your large recipe book that once belonged to your father. “Okay, what can I make that _won’t_ end in me burning the house down?” you muttered to yourself, flipping through the pages. You smiled to yourself as you glanced at the notes that your father had scrawled in the margins; it was like there was a piece of him still there with you. 

You eventually decided on just making some mushroom stew and steak. You got out your ingredients, and got to work.

\--

“Y/n! I’m back!” a familiar voice called after the front door swung open. “And I didn’t get stung by any bees today!” You smiled to yourself once you heard Tubbo’s voice; there was always a nice boost of positivity whenever he was around. 

“Good to hear ya, Tub! I’m in the kitchen!” you yelled in response, wiping off your hands with a rag. A few moments later, Tubbo was in the doorway to the kitchen, smiling. His smile seemed more forced than usual, you noticed, and there seemed to be this nervous aura surrounding him. You paid it no mind, not wanting to draw attention to it and make him more nervous, so you simply smiled in return and gave the boy a small wave. “Hey there,” you said with a light chuckle. 

“Hiiiii,” he replied, stepping further into the kitchen and sitting at the small table that was placed against the wall. For a brief moment, you panicked, thinking he would see the cake; but once you remembered what you did with it, you quickly calmed down. Luckily, you had hid the cake somewhere upstairs before he had gotten home. You ended up cycling through about three different hiding spots before deciding on the final one. And you were glad you did, because if you had kept it in the first place you hid it, Tubbo would’ve most definitely seen it from where he was sitting. 

“So, what’d you do today while I was out?” you asked, striking up a conversation with the brown-haired boy in front of you. 

“Well, for the majority of the day, I helped Big Q out over at the tavern in exchange for a portion of his pay for the day. And, there was this traveller who came in and we ended up speaking to him about all the crazy adventures he’s had,” Tubbo explained. You nodded to show you were listening. “And with all his adventure talk, it… it got me thinking.” His eyes began to shift nervously, switching between looking at the floor and looking at the walls around him; but his gaze never met yours. Oh. So whatever happened with this traveller was what gave him this nervousness you had noticed; clearly _something_ had happened, and now there was something in that head of his that he seemed afraid to bring up. 

“And you were thinking _what_ , exactly?” you questioned in curiosity. The way he fiddled with his fingers in his lap and the way that his eyes were darting around made it clear he was incredibly nervous to say what he wanted to say. “Hey, Tubbo, you don’t have to be nervous, okay?” you added with a soft smile, stepping closer to the boy who sat in a chair in front of you, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Just say whatever you have to say, I won’t judge you or be harsh with you.” He took a deep breath, closing his eyes. 

“I know, I know,” he muttered; you couldn’t tell if he was trying to convince you or himself of this sentiment, but either way, he seemed to be calming down at least a little. 

“Tell me whenever you’re ready, Tub.” He nodded after your statement, took a few more deep breaths, and looked up at you; he was finally looking you in the eyes for the first time since he had gotten home. 

“I was thinking… _what if I went looking for them?_ ” 

Your heart skipped a beat as your eyes widened. “ _W-What?_ ” you mumbled, your voice barely above a whisper. Part of you was hoping you hadn’t heard what you just heard. 

“What if I set out to find them?” he repeated, seeming a bit more confident with his idea. “Tommy and Wilbur and Techno, I mean; and Phil as well!” Your blood ran cold at the idea of Tubbo setting off by himself, leaving on some trek to find the boys, and the _many_ many possibilities of everything going horribly wrong. “I have my compass, I-I can find them that way! It’ll lead me directly to Tommy, and he’s bound to be with the others!”

You took a deep, shaky breath, and moved to sit at the small table across from him. “Tubbo, _please_ think this through more thoroughly-”

“I’ve been thinking about it all day!” he interrupted, seeming excited now -- quite the dramatic shift from his nervous feelings towards the subject mere moments before. “I-I could find them, and bring them back here to L’manburg!”

“Tubbo, I-”

“There’s ways that I can get to them quickly to make it a nice and short trip-”

“Tubbo _please-_ ”

“-and I could go through the Nether to make the trip even shorter!” Panic shot through you as the Nether was mentioned. That was where Tubbo had gotten separated from the boys in the first place, that was where many travelers went only to never return…

And it was where your father had gone, only to die horrifically at the hands of whatever terror existed in that hellscape. 

“ABSOLUTELY NOT!” You exclaimed suddenly, shooting up to your feet and slamming your hands down on the table. The chair you were sitting in tipped over backwards because of how quickly you had moved, and it hit the floor with a large clatter. Tubbo’s eyes went wide as you yelled, shrinking back into his chair in fear. It took a moment for you to realize that you had lashed out -- quite loudly, in fact -- and you quickly pulled your hands off the table and stepped away from it. The silence in the room now was deafening at this point, and the fact that Tubbo was tearing up with this horrified look only made everything worse. Guilt began to settle in your gut, and you were absolutely disgusted in the way you had spoken so harshly.

“Shit, Tubbo, I’m- I-” you began, not quite sure how to apologize. “God I am _so_ sorry, I didn’t mean to be so harsh...” you said, rubbing the back of your neck as you looked to the ground awkwardly. “I just… after what happened to my father in the Nether, I just…” You trailed off sadly, unsure of what else to say. You looked up at the boy, beginning to tear up a little as well once you locked eyes. You looked away, not sure if you could hold the eye contact for any longer. 

Tubbo slowly sat up properly in his chair as the shock of the situation began to wear off. He knew you didn’t mean to lash out like that -- you were never one to act in anger towards those you cared about -- and he wanted to reassure you that it was okay and that he knew you didn’t mean anything by it. He opened his mouth to speak, but you beat him to the punch.

“ _I can’t lose you like I lost my father, Tubbo. I can’t lose any more family._ ”

Your statement shocked him, to say the least; although what you had said was incredibly emotional, it was the soft and broken tone of your voice that had taken him by surprise. 

“Aw, wait, Y/n...” he began, rising from his seat and walking over to hug you. You stiffened at first upon contact, but quickly relaxed, hugging him in return. “It’s gonna be okay!” You hugged him tighter, and he sighed into your shoulder. “Look, I… I won’t go, okay? I’ll drop the idea.” Although he desperately wanted to find them, he knew how harsh it would be for you if something were to happen to him. 

You pulled away from the embrace, quickly wiping your tears away with the back of your hand. “Good,” you said with a small smile and light chuckle. “You fucking better.” Tubbo smiled and chuckled in return. 

“Guess I’ll have to settle for waiting for them a bit longer,” he said, and you nodded.

“It’s hard, I know; I’ve been waiting for years, I understand how hard it can be. But we can wait _together_ , Tub. Me and you,” you said, punching the boy’s shoulder playfully and he smiled. You and him. The other boys were gone, off who knows where -- they might not even be in the Kingdom of SMP anymore -- but you and Tubbo had each other.

“Me and you,” Tubbo repeated, smiling wider and hugging you once more. The two of you stood there in the kitchen in an embrace. 

Then, the scent of your food burning. 

“Fuck,” you said, quickly pulling yourself out of Tubbo’s arms to get the steaks from the furnace. When you pulled them out, they were black and charred. With a heavy sigh, you turned towards Tubbo with a defeated look on your face. “Tub, I burnt dinner.” He laughed loudly at this, nearly doubling over as his body shook with his laughter. You began to laugh as well, setting the horribly charred meat on your counter for you to deal with later. 

“Well, what’re we gonna eat then?” Tubbo asked curiously. 

“Well I already had some mushroom stew made…” you began, but smirked at the boy in front of you. You reached forward to ruffle his hair. “But I have a _much_ better idea.” 

Having a cake for dinner might not have been the best idea, sure, but what does it matter? The two of you needed a little pick-me-up after that little emotional outburst; and besides, a little sweetness never hurt anything. 

(Word Count: 3.19k)


	3. A Walk Through the Woods

“Phiiil, just how far do we have to go before we get to the bitch?” The rowdy blonde boy complained, slouching forward as he walked with his hands in his pockets. His winged father-figure walking alongside him sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

“ _Oh for fuck’s sake,_ ” he muttered under his breath before speaking. “Tommy, for the last time, stop calling your brother a bitch.”

“But Phil he’s-”

“I don’t care what he’s done, now shut your damn mouth for half a second, _please_.”

“Well now Phil, you and I both know that Tommy’s not capable of staying quiet,” the tall man walking beside the two teased with a smirk, glancing over at his younger brother to gauge his reaction. His curly brown hair fell into his eyes a little every time he moved his head, but he paid no mind to that. 

Tommy gasped loudly and dramatically before ceasing his movements, stopping in place and turning to face his older brother. “Oh fuck you, Wilbur! I can stay perfectly quiet just fine, ya prick!” the loud and brash boy exclaimed. Wilbur smirked, stopping with a chuckle and turning to face Tommy as well. He crossed his arms, cocking a brow at the slightly smaller boy. 

“Oh can you? Prove it then,” he teased, holding back his laughter as he watched Tommy’s face grow red like a tomato. 

“Oh I’ll fuckin show you quiet, you bitch! I-”

“BOYS, please!” Philza exclaimed, maneuvering to stand between the two boys, placing a hand on each of their chests to push them away from each other and to get their attention. Wilbur raised his arms up in surrender, taking a step back; Tommy practically growled, but took a step back as well, huffing and shoving his hands back into his pockets. “We’re wasting time! Look, we’re now standin here in the middle of the fuckin forest when we could be makin our way through and getting closer to Techno, but you two just won’t stop arguing! Not to mention the both of you are getting on my bloody nerves; specifically _you_ , Tommy!”

“I don’t know _what_ you’re talking about, I’m a _delightful_ man to be around!” Tommy said, crossing his arms once more. Wilbur giggled as Philza groaned, rolling his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose once more. Rather than engage with his unruly son again, he opted for walking forward; he would continue the journey whether or not the boys would follow. And if he were to be honest with himself, at this point there was a part of him that hoped they would choose to stay behind. 

Though, logically, that wouldn’t be wise if he were to leave them behind; the boys _were_ the entire reason they were on this little trip, after all. 

After a brief pause, the brothers continued walking as well, catching up to their father. “Well Phil, you never answered my question,” Tommy said, acting as if nothing had just happened. However, that’s how a lot of their interactions went; loud argument, then going back to normal as if an argument had never occurred in the first place. An odd family dynamic, sure, but it was theirs. 

Philza chuckled a little, rolling his eyes -- a thing he tended to do quite a lot around Tommy. “Well, why don’t you take a look around, yeah? What’s our environment right now?” he asked, trying to get the boy to think for himself. Tommy simply groaned. 

“How is looking at the fuckin trees gonna tell me if we’re close?” he questioned. “We’re in a _forest_ , Phil, there’s nothing _but_ trees! I don’t know when they end or where the things are in them!” Philza groaned and Wilbur chuckled. 

“Here, Phil, I can try to explain to him,” Wilbur offered, placing an affectionate hand on Tommy’s shoulder; an affectionate hand that Tommy _affectionately_ swatted off within an instant, bringing another chuckle out of his older brother. 

“Oh piss off!” Tommy grumbled. Wilbur simply ignored the aggressive comment and opted to continue; it was just Tommy being Tommy, after all. 

“So Tommy, Phil said that Technoblade is currently in that village by that mountain, right? The village with all the snow?” Tommy nodded, showing that he was listening. “Right, so, Tommy, answer this question: what trees grow in snowy areas?” After a moment of thought, Tommy grew frustrated and groaned. 

“I asked how close we are to the bastard, not what kind of fuckin plants grow near him!” he complained. This time Philza was the one to chuckle while Wilbur groaned. 

“I can’t fucking do it Phil, he’s a lost cause, the child is a lost cause,” Wilbur said, running a hand through his curly hair. Philza chuckled yet again, and Tommy scoffed. 

“I am _not_ a lost cause, you prick!” he exclaimed. “I’m a cause that can be found just _fine_ , thank you very much!”

“Tommy you don’t even know which trees grow in snowy areas, and you’re _how old_ now?” Wilbur questioned, already knowing the answer but just wanting to tease Tommy. 

“W-Well that’s- well-” the blonde stuttered, his face bunched up in confusion as he thought of a way to combat Wilbur’s statement. “W-What’s age got to do with anything?” he finally said, looking up at the taller man as they walked, crossing his arms. 

“It’s got to do with the fact that my brother is _16_ and doesn’t know one of the most basic facts of the vegetation in the world around him!” Wilbur replied, looking down to meet Tommy’s gaze. Tommy glared at him before looking back ahead of them. Wilbur rolled his eyes, looking back to the front as well. There was a moment of angry silence between them, awkward tension beginning to fill the air. At least, until Tommy spoke up. 

“Who gives a fuck about plants anyways? Flowers n shit, who needs em? I’ll stick with cobblestone, any day!” Tommy said, proudly jabbing a thumb at his own chest. Wilbur scoffed and rolled his eyes as Philza laughed. 

“Child, you are _absolutely_ mental,” he said between his chuckles.

“Well that’s for sure,” Wilbur added, “I’m thankful that we’re not blood related; I don’t want to share any of _those_ genes.” Tommy laughed, slapping Wilbur’s shoulder playfully. 

“Well I’m definitely the _most_ thankful we’re not blood-brothers, because if we were I might just have to kill myself; I’d have to live knowing that I had the same blood as this ugly bastard!” The two brothers were giggling and laughing together as Philza sighed with an eye-roll. The topic they had chosen to joke about could easily go south, turning into some sort of family argument. But, luckily the boys found it amusing and had no actual spite behind their words. 

Besides, even if their joking _had_ gone south, Philza knew that it wouldn’t tear them apart. Sure, this found-family was thrown together haphazardly, but family was family; and the bonds formed through choice and trust were thicker than any formed by blood. 

\--

The three continued through the forest, and the temperature had dropped significantly. Philza had his wings to wrap around himself if his coat didn’t block all the wind, and Wilbur brought along his long brown coat that brushed by his feet, so those two were faring just fine; Tommy, on the other hand, was not. He had certainly not come prepared, bringing only the clothes on his back and the enchanted compass that he kept with him at all times. 

The compass that would always lead him to his best friend. 

Tommy’s teeth chattered as he rubbed his arms, shaking as he walked. Taking notice of this, Wilbur sighed. “Tommy, why didn’t you come more prepared? You knew we were going to have to travel through the snow and the cold,” he said, half tempted to take off his coat and hand it to his freezing brother. However, he knew that Tommy was far too stubborn to accept ‘pity shit’, as he called it, so he knew his efforts would simply be refused. 

“Well I wasn’t quite focused on the details of where Technoblade was residing when we talked about it, alright?” the blonde hissed, finding it hard to speak through his chattering teeth. “I was more focused on the fact that once we found him we would get to find Tubbo.” Wilbur released a sigh yet again, and Philza opened his mouth to speak, but Tommy beat him to it. 

“Why do we even need to go get Technoblade for this anyways? Will and I could just follow the compass and make a quick trip through the Nether and find him in no time!” Philza paused, stopping in his tracks. Wilbur stopped too, eyes widening, and Tommy stopped only after realizing that his father and brother were a few feet behind him. He turned around, confused. “What? Phil, why’d you stop?”

“You damn child, you never seem to learn, do you?” Philza said, shaking his head as his eyes dropped to look at the snow at his feet. “Seeing as the Nether is the entire fucking reason you guys lost Tubbo in the first place, one would think you’d have enough bloody sense to know that you shouldn’t go back there by yourselves again!”

“Well Phil I-”

“Tommy I don’t want to hear it!” Philza interrupted, looking up at Tommy. “You and Wilbur and Tubbo decided to go into the Nether alone, without me and without my permission or knowledge. Technoblade is the only one of you with _actual_ combat training, and because he wasn’t there to protect you while I was gone, you fucked up and lost Tubbo!” Tommy’s gaze was glued to his shoes in shame at this point, and Wilbur was the same. It was true; they fucked up, and Tubbo suffered the consequences. Now he was god knows where, and they had to get someone capable to help them find him. 

“Tommy, I’m not letting you boys back into the Nether alone because we already lost Tubbo,” Philza continued, his tone a little softer. “He’s obviously not dead, because if he was then your compass would be broken; at least we know he’s alive somewhere. But, that doesn’t change the fact that we lost him and he isn’t with us. Normally I’d just fuckin come with you to go find him but I’ve got business to attend to in the next couple of days, I don’t have the time to leave on some search-party adventure.” He walked forward, getting closer to Tommy, and placed a hand on his shoulder. When Tommy didn’t move to swat his hand away, Philza smiled. 

“Believe me, I want Tubbo back too, mate. I don’t know if anyone could want him back as much as you, ya little shit, but trust me, I want him back.” With the little shit comment, Tommy couldn’t help but crack a small smile. “We all want him back with us. And I know you want that to happen sooner than later, Tommy, which is exactly why we’re going to get Techno.” 

“To be completely fair, what happened in the Nether was a shit-show; something I regret entirely,” Wilbur said, stepping closer to the two to join the conversation. “And if having Technoblade with us can prevent that from happening again, then by all means it’s something that _has_ to happen.” After a moment of silence, Tommy sighed, but wiped the mopey frown off his face and quickly replaced it with a grin. 

“Right then; let’s go get this snowy son of a bitch!”

“ _That’s_ the spirit, Tommy!” Philza said, clapping a hand on his son’s back proudly before continuing forward into the snow. “Now, try your best not to freeze to death, yeah?” Tommy scoffed and rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah yeah, whatever, _dad_ ,” he said, causing Philza to chuckle. 

Oh, how wonderful it was to have a family dynamic of bouncing right back after a fight or an emotional conversation. If it were anyone else, surely the tension would still be lingering in the air; but it was Philza and his sons, the family that was practically the definition of unorthodox. They were odd and strange, but that’s what made them themselves. 

Now, to add to the mess by getting Technoblade thrown back into this mix. 

(Word Count: 2.05k)


End file.
